Powered surgical instrument with pressure sensitive motor speed control

ABSTRACT

A surgical instrument includes a drive shaft, a motor for rotating the drive shaft, and a motor speed control. The motor speed control includes a first switch and a second switch which are in communication with the motor. The first switch is disposed over and in registration with the second switch. The first switch has an activated state such that the first switch sends a first signal to the motor. The motor rotates the drive shaft in response to the first signal. The second switch sends a second signal to the motor that varies the speed that the motor rotates the drive shaft in response to a force applied to the second switch by the first switch.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a divisional application which claims the benefit of and priority to U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/730,662, filed on Jun. 4, 2015, which claims the benefit of and priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62/031,340 filed Jul. 31, 2014, the entire disclosure of each of which is incorporated by reference herein.

BACKGROUND 1. Technical Field

The present disclosure relates to surgical instruments and, more specifically, to speed control systems for powered surgical instruments.

2. Discussion of Related Art

A number of surgical device manufacturers have developed product lines with proprietary drive systems for operating or manipulating the surgical device. In many instances the surgical devices include a handle assembly, which is reusable, and a disposable end effector or the like that is selectively connected to the handle assembly prior to use and then disconnected from the handle assembly following use in order to be disposed of or in some instances sterilized for re-use.

Many of the existing end effectors for use with many of the existing surgical devices or handle assemblies linearly advance a firing assembly to actuate the end effector. For example, end effectors for performing endo-gastrointestinal anastomosis procedures, end-to-end anastomosis procedures, and transverse anastomosis procedures, each typically require a linear advancement of a firing assembly in order to be operated.

Existing handle assemblies advance the firing assemblies at a predetermined speed. In addition, some handle assemblies include feedback systems that reduce the predetermined speed in response to surgical conditions such as tissue thickness. However, a clinician using the surgical device lacks control of the firing speed of the handle assembly.

Accordingly, there is a need to provide a clinician with an ability to vary the speed of advancement a firing assembly based surgical conditions observed by the clinician.

SUMMARY

In an aspect of the present disclosure, a surgical instrument includes a drive shaft, a motor for rotating the drive shaft and a motor speed control. The motor speed control includes a first switch and a second switch which are each in communication with the motor. The first switch is disposed over and in registration with the second switch. The first switch has an activated state such that the first switch sends a first signal to the motor. The motor rotates the drive shaft in response to the first signal. The second switch sends a second signal to the motor that varies the speed that the motor rotates the drive shaft in response to a force applied to the first switch.

In aspects, the second switch includes a force sensitive resistor that generates the second signal in response to the force applied to the first switch.

In some aspects, the motor rotates the drive shaft at a first radial speed in response to the first signal and rotates the drive shaft at a second radial speed in response to the second signal, the second radial speed being different than the first radial speed. The second radial speed may vary in response to a strength of the second signal. The strength of the second signal may vary in response to the force applied to the first switch. The strength of the second signal may vary proportionally or exponentially to the force applied to the first switch. The strength of the second signal may increase as the force applied to the first switch increases.

In certain aspects, the surgical instrument includes a first button slidably disposed over the motor speed control such that as the first button is depressed, the first button engages the first switch. The first button may apply the force to the first button. The first and second switches may be integrally formed as a tactile dome switch.

In another aspect of the present disclosure, a method of controlling the actuation speed of an end effector of a surgical instrument includes activating a first switch and applying a second force to the first switch. Activating the first switch includes sending a first signal to a motor by applying a first force to the first switch. The motor rotates a drive shaft at a first radial speed in response to the first signal. The drive shaft is operatively associated with an end effector of the surgical instrument to actuate the end effector. Applying the second force to the first switch includes the first switch applying a pressure to a second switch disposed under the first switch. The second switch sends a second signal to the motor which rotates the drive shaft at a second radial speed in response to the second signal. The second radial speed is different from the first radial speed.

In aspects, the method includes depressing a button that engages the first switch to activate the first switch and to apply the second force to the first switch.

In some aspects, actuating the end effector includes moving jaw members of the end effector from an open position to a clamped position. Additionally or alternatively, actuating the end effector may include ejecting staples from a jaw member of the end effector.

In certain aspects, actuating the end effector includes advancing a knife through a jaw member of the end effector.

In particular aspects, applying the first force to the first switch includes depressing the first switch a first distance and applying the second force may include depressing the first switch a second distance beyond the first distance.

Further, to the extent consistent, any of the aspects described herein may be used in conjunction with any or all of the other aspects described herein.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Various aspects of the present disclosure are described hereinbelow with reference to the drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view, with parts separated, of a surgical instrument and adapter, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure, illustrating a connection thereof with an end effector;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the surgical instrument of FIG. 1 ;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view, with parts separated, of the surgical instrument of FIGS. 1 and 2 ;

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along the section line 4-4 of FIG. 2 ;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged view of the area of detail of FIG. 4 ;

FIG. 6 is a side view of the motor speed control with the button engaging the motor speed control; and

FIG. 7 is a schematic view of an exemplary electrical circuit of the motor speed control of FIG. 4 in accordance with the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Embodiments of the present disclosure are now described in detail with reference to the drawings in which like reference numerals designate identical or corresponding elements in each of the several views. As used herein, the term “clinician” refers to a doctor, a nurse, or any other care provider and may include support personnel. Throughout this description, the term “proximal” refers to the portion of the device or component thereof that is closest to the clinician and the term “distal” refers to the portion of the device or component thereof that is farthest from the clinician.

A surgical device, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure, is generally designated as 100, and is in the form of a powered hand held electromechanical instrument configured for selective attachment thereto of a plurality of different end effectors that are each configured for actuation and manipulation by the powered hand held electromechanical surgical instrument.

As illustrated in FIG. 1 , surgical device 100 is configured for selective connection with an adapter 200, and, in turn, adapter 200 is configured for selective connection with an end effector or single use loading unit 300. As detailed herein, end effector 300 is a stapling end effector; however, it is contemplated that the surgical device 100 may be selectively connected to a plurality of end effectors that are configured to perform a variety of surgical procedures to tissue (e.g., stapling, sealing, dissecting, and sampling).

As illustrated in FIGS. 1-3 , surgical device 100 includes a handle housing 102 having a lower housing portion 104, an intermediate housing portion 106 extending from and/or supported on lower housing portion 104, and an upper housing portion 108 extending from and/or supported on intermediate housing portion 106. Intermediate housing portion 106 and upper housing portion 108 are separated into a distal half-section 110 a that is integrally formed with and extending from the lower portion 104, and a proximal half-section 110 b connectable to distal half-section 110 a by a plurality of fasteners. When joined, distal and proximal half-sections 110 a, 110 b define a handle housing 102 having a cavity 102 a therein in which a circuit board 150 and a drive mechanism 160 is situated.

Upper housing portion 108 of handle housing 102 provides a housing in which drive mechanism 160 is situated. The drive mechanism 160 is configured to drive shafts and/or gear components in order to perform the various operations of surgical device 100. In particular, drive mechanism 160 is configured to drive shafts and/or gear components in order to selectively move tool assembly 304 of end effector 300 (FIG. 1 ) relative to proximal body portion 302 of end effector 300, to rotate end effector 300 about a longitudinal axis “X” (FIG. 3 ) relative to handle housing 102, to move anvil assembly 306 relative to cartridge assembly 308 of end effector 300 between open and clamped positions, or to fire a stapling and cutting cartridge within cartridge assembly 308 of end effector 300 to eject staples (not explicitly shown) from the cartridge assembly 308 and to advance a knife 309 through the cartridge assembly 308.

The drive assembly 160 includes a first motor 80 that rotates a first drive shaft 82 and a second motor 90 that rotates a second drive shaft 92. The first drive shaft 82 is operatively associated with the end effector 300 such that rotation of the first drive shaft 82 fires stapling and cutting cartridge within the cartridge assembly 308. The second drive shaft 92 is operatively associated with the end effector 200 such that rotation of the second drive shaft rotates the end effector 200 about the longitudinal axis “X” as detailed below. It is contemplated that the first and second drive shafts 82, 92 may be operatively associated with different functions of the end effector 200.

Exemplary examples of electromechanical, hand-held, powered surgical instruments and adapters are disclosed in commonly owned and co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/331,047, filed Dec. 20, 2011 and published as U.S. Patent Publication No. 2012/0089131 on Apr. 12, 2012, and Ser. No. 13/484,975, filed May 31, 2012 and published as U.S. Patent Publication No. 2012/0253329 on Oct. 4, 2012, the contents of each are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety.

As illustrated in FIGS. 1-3 , the handle housing 102 supports a trigger housing 107 on a distal surface or side of the intermediate housing portion 108. The trigger housing 107, in cooperation with the intermediate housing portion 108, supports a pair of finger-actuated control buttons 124, 126 and rocker devices 128, 130. In particular, the trigger housing 107 defines an upper aperture 125 for slidably receiving a first control button 124, and a lower aperture 127 for slidably receiving a second control button 126. Each one of the control buttons 124, 126 is moved or actuated by a clinician to affect movement of the end effector 300.

With additional reference to FIGS. 4-6 , the circuit board 150 includes motor speed controls 10, 20 that are engaged by the control buttons 124, 126 to affect movement of the end effector 300. Each of the motor speed controls 10, 20 are in communication with the drive assembly 160 to affect rotation of the first and second drive shafts 82, 92. The motor speed control 10 is in communication with the motor 80 to control the rotational speed of first drive shaft 82 and the motor speed control 20 is in communication with the motor 90 to control the rotational speed of the second drive shaft 92.

Each of the control buttons 124, 126 includes a plunger 124 a, 126 a that engages a respective one of the motor speed controls 10, 20. With particular reference to FIGS. 5 and 6 , the motor speed control 10 is located immediately proximal to the control button 124 and is engagable by the plunger 124 a of the control button 124.

The motor speed control 10 includes a first switch 12, a second switch 14, and a control support 18. The control support 18 is fixed to the circuit board 150 and supports the first and second switches 12, 14 on a distal facing surface directed towards the plunger 124 a. The second switch 14 is mounted on the control support 18 between the first switch 12 and the control support 18. The control button 124 is depressible a first distance to engage the first switch 12 with a plunger 124 a of the control button 124. When the plunger 124 a engages the first switch 12, the first switch 12 applies a force or pressure to the second switch 14. It is contemplated that the first and second switches 12, 14 may be provided as a tactile dome switch such that the first and second switches are integrally formed with one another.

When the first switch 12 is activated by the plunger 124 a, the motor speed control 10 sends a first signal S₁ (FIG. 7 ) to the motor 80. The first signal S₁ activates the motor 80 to rotate the first drive shaft 82 at a first radial speed. The first switch 12 may have a threshold pressure that is required to activate the first switch 12.

When the first switch 12 is activated, any additional force applied to the first switch 12, beyond an initial activation amount of the first switch 12, is transferred to the second switch 14 (i.e., when the first switch is depressed a second distance after the first distance). The second switch 14 includes a force resistor 15 that detects the force or pressure applied to the second switch 14 by the first switch 12 and sends a second signal S₂ (FIG. 7 ) that controls the rotational speed of the first motor 80. As the force applied to the control button 124 is increased, the force applied to the first switch 12 by the plunger 124 a is increased, and thus, the force applied to the second switch 14, by the first switch 12, is increased. As the force applied to the second switch is increased, the force resistor 15 increases the strength of the second signal S₂. As the strength of the second signal S₂ increases, the rotational speed of the first motor 80 increases such that the first drive shaft 82 rotates at a second radial speed that is greater than the first radial speed. It will be appreciated that as the force applied to the force resistor 15 increases, the speed at which the first motor 80 rotates the first drive shaft 82 increases.

It is contemplated that the speed at which the first motor 80 rotates the first drive shaft 82 increases proportionally to the increase in the force realized by the force resistor 15. Alternatively, it is contemplated that the speed at which the first motor 80 rotates the first drive shaft 82 increases exponentially to the increase in the force realized by the force resistor 15. In addition, it is contemplated that as the force realized by the force resistor 15 increases, the speed at which the first motor 80 rotates the first drive shaft 82 decreases.

The second motor control 20 is operatively associated with a second motor 90 that rotates a second drive shaft 92. The second motor control 20 is engaged by the second switch 126 and controls the second motor 90 in a manner similar to the first motor control 10 controlling the first motor 80 detailed above. Accordingly, the operation of the second switch 126 and the second motor control 20 will not be detailed herein for reasons of brevity.

It is contemplated that the first motor speed control 10 and/or the second motor speed control 20 is provided on an external surface of the surgical instrument 100 such that the motor speed controls 10, 20 may be directly engaged by a clinician (e.g., a clinician may directly engage the first switch 12 and apply increased pressure to the first switch 12 to increase the speed of a motor associated with the first motor speed control 10).

Referring to FIG. 7 , when the first switch 12 is activated, the first signal S₁ is sent from a second op amp 86 to a motor control unit 81 that is in electrical communication with the motor 80 to power the motor 80. The first signal S₁ is a binary signal (e.g., on or off) such that when the first signal S₁ activates the motor 80 by supplying energy to the motor 80 such that the motor 80 rotates at the first radial speed. When the second switch 14 is depressed, the force resistor 15, which is disposed within the second switch 14, increases the strength of the second signal S₂ sent to a first op amp 85. The second signal S₂ is sent from the first op amp 85 to the motor control 81 which supplies energy to the motor 80 in response to the second signal S₂ such that the radial speed of the motor 80 changes in response to the second signal S₂.

In an embodiment, as the first switch 12 is depressed, the force resistor 15 sends a pressure signal Sp to the first op amp 85 that is proportional to the pressure applied to the first switch 12. When the pressure signal Sp is over or greater than a threshold value (i.e., the pressure on the force resistor 15 is over or greater than a threshold value), the first op amp 85 activates the second op amp 86 to send the first signal S₁ to the motor control 81. The first op amp 85 also sends the second signal S₂ to the motor control 81 that is proportional to the pressure signal Sp. The second signal S₂ may pass through an analog to digital converter between the first op amp 85 and the motor control 81.

It some embodiments, the first signal S₁ is a bi-stable signal that can be used either for two speed motor control (e.g., high and low) or could be used as a range switch for setting the motor 80 in a variable low speed range or a variable high speed range.

While several embodiments of the disclosure have been shown in the drawings, it is not intended that the disclosure be limited thereto, as it is intended that the disclosure be as broad in scope as the art will allow and that the specification be read likewise. Any combination of the above embodiments is also envisioned and is within the scope of the appended claims. Therefore, the above description should not be construed as limiting, but merely as exemplifications of particular embodiments. Those skilled in the art will envision other modifications within the scope of the claims appended hereto. 

What is claimed:
 1. A method of controlling the actuation speed of an end effector of a surgical instrument, the method comprising: activating a first switch to send a first signal to a motor by applying a first force to the first switch, the motor rotating a drive shaft at a first radial speed in response to the first signal, and the drive shaft operatively associated with the end effector of the surgical instrument to actuate the end effector; applying a second force to the first switch such that the first switch applies the second force to a second switch disposed under the first switch, the second switch sending a second signal to the motor, the motor rotating the drive shaft at a second radial speed in response to the second signal, the second radial speed being different than the first radial speed; measuring, by a force resistor in the second switch, the force applied to the second switch by the first switch when the second force is applied to depress the control button; and sending, by the force resistor, a pressure signal to a first amplifier, such that when the pressure signal is greater than a threshold force the first amplifier activates a second amplifier to send the first signal to a motor speed control configured to supply energy to the motor, while simultaneously sending a second signal, that is proportional to the pressure signal, to the motor speed control, such that the second signal to the motor speed control varies the speed that the motor rotates a drive shaft in response to an amount of the first force applied to the first switch, which exceeds the threshold force, to actuate the end effector.
 2. The method of claim 1, further comprising depressing a button that engages the first switch to activate the first switch and to apply the second force to the first switch.
 3. The method of claim 1, wherein actuating the end effector includes moving jaw members of the end effector from an open position to a clamped position.
 4. The method of claim 1, wherein actuating the end effector includes ejecting staples from a jaw member of the end effector.
 5. The method of claim 1, wherein actuating the end effector includes advancing a knife through a jaw member of the end effector.
 6. The method of claim 1, wherein applying the first force to the first switch includes depressing the first switch a first distance and applying the second force includes depressing the first switch a second distance beyond the first distance.
 7. A method of controlling the actuation speed of an end effector of a surgical instrument, the method comprising: applying a first force to depress a control button by a first distance to engage a first switch, the first switch sending a signal to a motor to rotate a drive shaft at a first radial speed, wherein the drive shaft is operatively associated with the end effector of the surgical instrument to actuate the end effector; applying a second force to depress the control button by a second distance to further engage the first switch such that the first switch applies a pressure to a second switch disposed adjacent the first switch, the second switch sending a second signal to the motor to rotate the drive shaft at a second radial speed, the second radial speed being different than the first radial speed, and measuring, by a force resistor on the second switch, the force applied to the second switch by the first switch when the second force is applied to depress the control button.
 8. The method of claim 7, wherein the first force applied to the control button must exceed a predefined threshold value in order to transmit the first signal to the motor.
 9. The method of claim 8, wherein the first radial speed of rotation of the drive shaft, in response to the first signal, is fixed at a predefined maximum value.
 10. The method of claim 7, wherein the strength of the second signal sent to the motor by the second switch increases proportionally with the force applied to the second switch by the first switch, when the control button is depressed by the second force.
 11. The method of claim 10, further comprising varying the second radial speed of rotation of the drive shaft in proportion to the strength of the second signal.
 12. The method of claim 7, further comprising exponentially increasing the strength of the second signal sent to the motor by the second switch, when control button is depressed by the second force.
 13. The method of claim 12, further comprising varying the second radial speed of rotation of the drive shaft in proportion to the strength of the second signal.
 14. The method of claim 7, wherein the second distance is greater than the first distance.
 15. The method of claim 7, wherein the second force is greater than the first force.
 16. The method of claim 7, wherein actuating the end effector includes moving jaw members of the end effector from an open position to a clamped position.
 17. The method of claim 7, wherein actuating the end effector includes ejecting staples from a jaw member of the end effector.
 18. The method of claim 7, wherein actuating the end effector includes advancing a knife through a jaw member of the end effector.
 19. The method of claim 7, wherein applying the first force to the first switch includes depressing the first switch a first distance and applying the second force includes depressing the first switch a second distance beyond the first distance. 